Director's Notes

What frightens you?  Imagine being stalked by a practicing sociopath.  Then imagine not being able to identify your stalker or even see him coming.  So it was for Doreen Yale, a blind woman working for the British prison system.  This play is based on the true story of Doreen’s experience.

 

The play began life as a short story about 5 years ago when Doreen told me her story.  It was then written as an audio drama and finally a staged production.  Throughout its many stages of development Common Criminal has retained the essential element of truth that life is stranger than fiction.   I have waited a long time before attempting to produce this work as I wanted to assemble the proper combination of talent and enthusiasm.  Thankfully, this all gelled over the last few months.  We have an amazing cast, each of whom bring a unique perspective to the story.

 

Common Criminal is also a special production in that it is part of the Descriptive Audio Project with Ryerson University’s Centre Learning Technologies which is attempting to develop new standards in accessible entertainment. 

 

The haunting music of Toronto musician Sean Peever will get under your skin.  I handed Sean a poem I'd written about 20 years ago entitled "What Frightens You?"  He came back to me a couple of days later with the music.  It's awesome and creepy and everything it should be.  It threaded nicely though the play and added a dimension to the narrative in that some unvoiced visual action on stage is described audibly through music.

 

When we first went into rehearsal the play had no Memory.  She evolved as a need to assist in the explanation of the back story.  At first, the MacPherson character mimed to the music or narrative.  This seemed boring and empty.  I thought it would be a nice touch if we added the personification of the memory of his last victim.  Since this victim was supposed to have been a disabled woman, I chose to make her deaf.  The Memory never speaks vocally.  She communicates through the dance, movement and American Sign Language.  This is an excellent creative vehicle to explore and utilize the audio descriptive element of the play.  

 

 

I have tried several formats of audio description technique with this project.  Firstly we have the musical narrative told through the perspective of the killer.  Since Sean was already providing the musical voice for Gregory McPherson I thought it only natural that he speak the descriptive narrative that follows story voicing unspoken action on stage.  The narrative is the voice in the villain’s head as it were.   It was also a very portable and effective way of accomplishing our goal.  An added layer to this production is the descriptive technology provided by Ryerson.  From a booth an actor follows a script that describes most visual aspects of the play, costumes, sets, action etc from the perspective of a character. The audience listens though headphones, and has the choice to take advantage of this technology, or not. For this I have chosen the Memory.  She voices the back-story, and certain action from her own perspective, although, on stage she never speaks.  The contrast with this descriptive and the onstage descriptive has a nice contrast and should be experienced.

 

By employing all these techniques we hope to provide an accessible theatre experience for all.

 

I hope you enjoy the show as much as we enjoy performing it for you!         

 

Wanda C. Fitzgerald

Director/Artistic Principal